The garage on Main Street in Norristown, where jurors park, is falling apart — $8 million.

One Montgomery Plaza, the hub of county offices, is in such disrepair that the façade is falling off — $40 million.

Whether to repair or rebuild, how to finance either option, logistical concerns and prioritizing the work will be the biggest challenge facing the Montgomery County Commissioners this year, commissioners Chairman Josh Shapiro said Friday, Jan. 25, in an interview with Montgomery Media editors.

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The 39-year-old former state representative from Abington, who painted himself as his own man — “I don’t pay attention to the politics of the decision” — spoke about his first year leading the county and his plans for 2013. Listing a number of ways his administration has saved taxpayers money, he described the need to fix the county’s infrastructure as his main goal this year.

“It took years of deferred and ignored maintenance to get in this state of disrepair,” Shapiro said. “We will no longer put it off. We will make a public decision in the first quarter.”

Investing in infrastructure includes not just the three structurally unsound county properties, but also county roads and bridges. Of 129 county bridges, 62 are structurally deficient and many of the roads — “there are more miles of road in Montgomery County than in any other county in the state” — also need repair, he said.

As head of the first Democratic majority on the county board in more than 100 years, Shapiro listed improving morale, getting the county’s finances in order and negotiating a deal for a new emergency radio system for $90 million less than originally estimated as among his first year of accomplishments.

As opposed to the prior administration, which became known for constant bickering, Shapiro said he and fellow Democrat Leslie Richards as well as Republican Bruce Castor get along. And while they may not agree on everything, “we still find consensus,” and all votes have been unanimous.

A $49.3 million “structural deficit” the commissioners inherited, created by a $10 million shortfall in the last budget of the prior administration, in addition to previous spending that was more than budgeted, has been tackled to a great extent through zero-based budgeting, he said. Under that system, part of the platform on which Shapiro campaigned, each department lists its core functions, which establish a baseline for future years.

By using zero-based budgeting, a balanced budget with no tax increase was passed for 2013, he said. A new ethics policy and new procurement policy were also put in place last year, reducing costs to taxpayers by more than $5 million, he said.

About $5 million of the $29.9 million contract with Motorola for the new emergency radio system that will be rolled out this year is for devices, with the rest for infrastructure, Shapiro said. The county is working on a package “to help alleviate some of the burden on municipalities,” he said, adding “the municipalities understand they will have to shoulder some of this burden … we’re trying to make sure everybody can afford it.”

Maintenance costs for the radio system are included in the 2013 budget, but the county is still analyzing how it will finance the capital costs for the system as well as the other infrastructure projects, he said, noting a $100 million reserve fund was down to $20 million when he took office.

A “sweeping reform” of the county’s pension fund last year resulted in saving taxpayers more than $1 million by “getting politics out of the fund,” Shapiro said. The $450 million fund is 90 percent funded, but fees to a consultant and “too many money managers,” were high, “so we got rid of the money managers and the consultant and put the money in Vanguard.”

Shapiro also touted the consolidation of departments during his first year, from 58 to 50, which, he acknowledged will result in the elimination of about 170 positions. Some, he said, were through attrition but some did result in layoffs.

“Personally it’s a hard process , but you have to balance that with the fact that I was elected to perform a certain function,” he said. “In some cases that means personnel changes.

“There are no sacred cows,” he added. “It applies across the board.”

His first year concentrated on internal reforms, but he envisions increasing attention to “external” matters, such as infrastructure and open space in the next three years, he said.

And though his name has come up as a possible candidate for governor, Shapiro deflected any aspirations he may have for higher office, preferring to concentrate on his current position and establish his style of leadership.

His concern is not to reward political backers, he said; “the best proposal gets the work.” And while he acknowledged some of his political friends have been upset, he said, “I’ve got a job to do. The best politics is to do your job well. That will trump everything.”